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Police report on hotel death doctored – ISO

Sunday March 11 2018

In Summary

During his last press conference as police chief on February 20, 2018, Gen Kale Kayihura presided over the release of a police report that indicated that Tersvouri Toomajuha Petteri died of drugs.

Lt Col Joseph Aliganyira, the ISO director punctures holes in the police report and says the closed circuit television (CCTV) footage that is said to depict the death was “doctored”.

Security personnel told Petteri and Linden that they could have been invited by fraudsters.

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By RISDEL KASASIRA

The Internal Security Organisation (ISO) has said the death of the Finnish businessman at Pearl of Africa Hotel on February 6, 2018 was planned, contrary to what the police said yesterday. During his last press conference as police chief on February 20, 2018, Gen Kale Kayihura presided over the release of a police report that indicated that Tersvouri Toomajuha Petteri died of drugs.

Contrary to what Gen Kayihura said, however, Lt Col Joseph Aliganyira, the ISO director for political affairs, says the death was a “pre-planned move”. He punctures holes in the police report and says the closed circuit television (CCTV) footage that is said to depict the death was “doctored”.

Other deathsPetteri died at Pearl of Africa Hotel in Kampala just a day after a Swedish national, Alex Sebastian, 41, was found dead in his room at Sheraton Hotel under similar circumstances.Police later said the two Europeans died of drugs.

Petteri and his colleague Suvi Lindén, investigations have unearthed, a former minister in Finland, had been invited to Uganda by individuals who have since been arrested, including an ISO operative, Apollo Kyabagye. The deceased and Linden were sent an invitation with an alleged forged signature of Col Kaka Bagyenda, the director general of ISO, to come to Uganda and make a presentation to ISO on the “planned business” deal to supply the intelligence agency with security equipment.

On arrival at Entebbe Airport, Petteri and Linden told the airport security personnel that they had come to meet Col Bagyenda, but on contacting the ISO boss, he said he was not aware of any visitors coming from Finland to see him.At the same time, Kyabagye and two ladies, Carol Aturinda and Faridah Naluyima, who had gone to the airport to pick the visitors and tried to run away on sensing that they faced arrest, but Aturinda was arrested after realising that Petteri and Linden were being interrogated by the ISO operatives at the airport.

Not fraudSecurity personnel told Petteri and Linden that they could have been invited by fraudsters.But Lt Col Aliganyira said this wasn’t about fraud. “It wasn’t about a deal. It was pre-planned and we shall give you full details. We shall get you the right thing,” he said. He said their report is different from that of the police which said Petteri died of drug.“That was their [police] report. We have a different report. We shall release it soon,” Lt Col Aliganyira said. He added that suspicions of foul play are amplified by the footage currently in possession of the security agencies about Petteri’s death, which he said was doctored.

He said the footage has both CCTV and High Definition resolution footages. “It was manipulated. There were a lot of insertions, trying to create someone who looked like him [the deceased Finn]. One has a bald head but the other doesn’t,” he saidLt Col Aliganyira, however, refused to reveal who gave them the manipulated footage. “We are still investigating and we shall give you full details,” he said. In the CCTV footage which ISO says was doctored, Petteri is shown in the video at 23:01:38, at what time it is believed he was already dead.

UNDISCLOSED SOURCELt Col Aliganyira, however, refused to reveal who gave them the manipulated footage. “We are still investigating and we shall give you full details,” he said. In the CCTV footage which ISO says was doctored, Petteri is shown in the video at 23:01:38, at what time it is believed he was already dead. [email protected]